REWIND REVIEW: The Losers

MOVIE
The Losers

CAST
Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Zoë Saldana

RATING
PG-13

RELEASE
April 23, 2010

DIRECTOR
Sylvain White

STUDIO
Warner Bros. Pictures

RUNNING TIME
1 hour 37 minutes





GRADE
A (93)





STARS
***1/2








REVIEW:

Sure, you might think that The A Team are #1, the only ones for the job, or the heroes. Well they might want to take a step back because here comes The Losers, a special force team that, like The A Team have fun doing their job. And because of that, the audience has fun watching The Comedian of Watchmen, Uhura of Star Trek, and the upcoming Captain America kick some serious butt throughout parts all over the world.

The Losers consists of the worlds deadliest and most reliable U.S. soldiers. That's until the mysterious Max attempts to assassinate them and frame them for the murder of 25 children. These men survived the attack, but they have been proclaimed dead and they can't get back home to the U.S. But one day, a mysterious woman by the name of Aisha comes with a proposition for the team: They will be able to come back to the U.S. permanently, but they have to find, and kill Max. So if they want they're lives back, they have to steal it.

If you're looking for mindless action, funny comedy, and lots of guns, then this is the movie for you. All of the cast seems like they're having a fun time doing what they're doing. But the most fun and the best character in this movie is Chris Evans, who you'd probably know from the Fantastic Four series whom he played the Human Torch in. This guy is hilarious and super fun to watch. I'm pretty sure he likes the band "Journey" a lot, since in some of the scenes he's in, they play the hit song "Don't Stop Believin" which is mainly used in the comedic effect. All of the other cast members, including Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Zoe Saldana, and Idris Elba seem to also be having fun making this, which is really one of the key elements of why this movie is so good.

I do find this movie very similar to The A Team, which did come out just over a month after this one. But to be honest, I really didn't care about the similarities, because I enjoyed them both. Really, If you see one of them, you saw them both in a way, but I'd still recommend seeing them both, whether you see this or The A Team first. But either way, they are both very fun, very funny movies.

So overall, The Losers is a fun and fast movie that'll kepp you watching until the credits stop. And I do mean that since there are a couple of snippets during the credits. If you enjoy action movies with no point of it actually being made, then this is perfect for you, like The A Team would be. Also, this is the perfect movie for men after a football game with nothing much to do except go back to their family. So if you have nothing to do, hanging out with the guys, or just want to watch something fun, then stop thinking that you're a winner and consider yourself a Loser for a change.

REVIEW: Vampires Suck

MOVIE
Vampires Suck

CAST
Jenn Proske, Matt Lanter

RATING
PG-13

RELEASE
August 18, 2010

DIRECTOR(S)
Jason Friedberg, Aaron Seltzer

STUDIO(S)
20th Century Fox,
Regency Enterprises

RUNNING TIME
1 hour 20 minutes






GRADE
B- (81)









STARS
**1/4









REVIEW:

After the sheer awful-ness of the box office flop Disaster Movie (it's not just a clever title,) Jason Friedberg and Aaron Seltzer give us their latest movie Vampires Suck. You can already guess from the title that this movie parodies the worldwide phenomenom known as The Twilight Saga. But surprising as it is, I actually went (and paid) to go see it with my friend, my sister, and my friends brother. And we all agreed that, despite the directors' crappy past, this one was actually their best one, although that isn't saying a lot.

Vampires Suck basically takes the main plot of the original Twilight, (see my review in the Archives to the right) adds different names to some of the main characters, and adds jokes about everything else. We all have to remember that Jason Friedberg and Aaron Seltzer are like the Ed Wood of the 21st century. One day, probably in the next century, their movies will be like the cult status of Plan 9 From Outer Space, with them being "so bad, it's good." Right now, most would doubt that even these mostly awful directors would even acheive that, but I have hope for them.

Really, there are only eight jokes in this movie that were quite funny, but the rest of the movie just made me watch with no laughter. One of those things includes possibly the funniest person to be in this movie, and almost certainly one of the best up and coming actresses in the next couple of years is Jenn Proske as Becca, who actually does a teriffic job spoofing Kirsten Stewart's strange, "Edward. Edward. I love you." act. And most of the time, it is indeed funny. Some of the jokes in this movie did make me laugh quite a bit, but the rest, like I said just made me stare. I would also like to point out that if you haven't read Breaking Dawn, the final Twilight book in the series, don't see this because they spoil major plot points that are in the book, which really ticked off some of the girls in the movie.

So do you have to rush out to see this? No. Will this make you laugh a little? Possibly. Is it worth a rental? I think so. Since I'm a Twi-hard, there I said it, I enjoyed this movie quite a bit, it's not the best movie of the year, but it's something to pick up at Redbox when it comes out on DVD (or Blu-Ray since Redbox has them now for 50 cents more.) And I can surely say that this is not a movie for the young Twi-hards, since there are buckets of sex jokes in this movie. So if you like Twilight and don't mind the fact that Hollywood's current worst directors are making this, then I'd say, check it out while you are slightly drunk with you're boyfriend or girlfriend. So do Vampires Suck? I don't think so.











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REVIEW: Scott Pilgrim vs. The World

MOVIE
Scott Pilgrim vs. The World

CAST
Michael Cera,
Mary Elizabeth Winstead

RATING
PG-13

RELEASE
August 13, 2010

DIRECTOR
Edgar Wright

STUDIO
Universal Pictures

RUNNING TIME
1 hour 53 minutes

GRADE
A+ (100)







STARS
****










REVIEW:

Edgar Wright is a director where I have never seen any of his films, since they were all R. I've heard all of his movies are quite good, but not even that could prepare me for this. His latest movie is Scott Pilgrim vs. The World, an action-packed, video game-like love story is is practically a love letter to the video game/Nintendo generations and is truely, a film like no other. What I mean by that is, imagine a movie that combines video games, a love story, and a whole lot of cartoonish violence. Yes, it is hard to believe, but with Edgar Wright behind the camera and Michael Cera (what the heck?) as the title character, it becomes a movie that never looses your focus until the credits start up.


In Toronto, Canada, a 22 year old boy by the name of Scott Pilgrim is in a band named Sex Bob-omb and is dating a catholic-Chinese high school er by the name of Knives. Hard to believe, right? But one night, he meets the girl of his dreams by the name of Ramona Flowers. But little does Scott know, dating Ramona is going to be much harder than it looks. I turns out that in order for Scott to date Ramona, he must defeat her seven evil exes. How far will Scott go to get the girl of his dreams?


How can a movie with such a simple plot be so entertaining to the modern audience? Personally, I have NO idea. The movie is just one of those that pulls you in and in a way, makes you feel involved. From the moment the retro version of the Universal theme came on, I knew I was in for a treat. Probably one of the reasons why the movie is entertaining is that the whole movie acts like a video game. You know, the old late 80s-early 90s ones with the power ups, tokens, etc. For example, in one scene, you see Scott going to the bathroom, and a pee bar appears on the screen and drains out while he's going. Stuff like that, but that's one of the main reasons why this film is so fun.


The casting in this film is quite perfect for this type of movie. Michael Cera, who plays the same character in every film he's in, which is the nerdy character plays Scott pretty well, even though I never read the graphic novels, although I am going to try to pretty soon. But of all of the excellent performances in the movie, the one that stole the show in every scene he was featured in was Kieren Culkin, younger brother to child star Macauley Culkin. Kieren plays Scott's very cool, very gay roommate Wallace Wells, who is both a motivator to Scott and very funny throughout the 2 hour movie. Another group of cast members that stole the show were the seven evil exes, which included major stars like Chris Evans and Jason Schwartzmen.


I did also think that the idea itself was pretty clever and original. It asks the fatal question: how far will you go to get the girl of your dreams? That is answered in the movie, but I don't want to spoil it. I do also think that the visual effects were pretty impressive. Not as amazing as Inception's visuals, but this at least deserves a nomination, whether it's at the Oscars or Golden Globes. Throughout the movie, whenever something makes a noise, like thud, the word "thud" would appear on as if it was a comic book or graphic novel. And movies don't normally do things like that. That's why this movie is so good: because it's different.


I would like to point out that, even though this got and deserves a PG-13 rating, really there were only a few parts that were inappropriate. I didn't see this with my 9 year old sister, thankfully, but after walking out, I really didn't think it was too bad. Personally, I think she'll be fine with it when she turns 11. Other than that, the only things risque in this movie were A.) Kieren Culkin being shown in bed with men, though nothing graphic is shown, B.) There's one scene where the two leads are half dressed and making out on a bed, though nothing after that happens, and C.) and I get this quote on quote from CommonSenseMedia.org, "One of Ramona's evil exes is a "bi-curous" girl; Scott defeats her by touching her in an innocuous place that makes her have an instantaneous orgasm and explode." Other than those particular parts, this movie is good for 11-12 year olds.

Overall, Scott Pilgrim might not be for everyone, but I sure as heck had a very fun time. Video game fans will be very pleased wih the movie, as will moviegoers who have a taste for things like this. I truely think that some of this stuff could be Oscar worthy. Nothing like Best Picture or Best Director, (although I would nominate this for both) but for things like Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Visual Effects. But if this did get nominated for Best Picture, I would be both surprised and pleased. There's so much more that I can say about the movie, but I can't remember them all at once. I would like to point out that the soundtrack and score for the movie, in which the soundtrack includes songs from Scott's band Sex Bob-omb blends with the movie's epicness flawlessly. So if you want to experience one of the best films of 2010, then you might want to check out Scott Pilgrim vs. The World.




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REVIEW: The Other Guys

MOVIE
The Other Guys

CAST
Will Ferrell, Mark Wahlberg

RATING
PG-13

RELEASE
August 6, 2010

DIRECTOR
Adam McKay

STUDIO
Columbia Pictures

RUNNING TIME
1 hour 47 minutes







GRADE
A- (92)





STARS
***1/4









REVIEW:

Who doesn't know who Will Ferrell is? Well if you don't, he's famous for movies like Elf, Anchorman, and Taladega Nights. Now he once again teams up with Adam McKay, whose directed Mr. Ferrell in Anchorman, Taladega Nights, and Step Brothers for The Other Guys, a stupid, absently minded movie with major talent including Markey Mark, sorry no funky bunch, Eva Mendes, Michael Keaton, Dwayne Johnson, and Samuel L. Jackson. And with all of its stupidity, from start to finish, I laughed a lot, and I do mean a lot.

There are cops that always make calls and stop crimes. And then there are The Other Guys, who just work in offices all day and have no excitement. These men include New York City detective Allen Gamble, who's a forensic accountant that's into paperwork and refuses to do fieldwork and detective Terry Hoitz, has been stuck working with Gamble since Gamble's recent transfer. After an unexpected tragedy occurs, Gamble and Hoitz must step up to the plate and help solve a crime of unspeakable money theft, while trying to get out of a lot of ridiculous situations.

What can I say: Will Ferrell is a comic genius, period. I really don't have to explain it, he just is. Mark Wahlberg is also very funny playing the serious man that also wants to spread his wings and fly, like a peacock. Adam McKay does some of the funniest work that I've ever seen him do, although it's not as funny as Taladega Nights, which happens to be one of my favorites. But this movie is very close to Taladega's superiorness. The supporting actors, like Eva Mendes, Samuel L. Jackson, and Dwayne Johnson are also incredibly funny to watch doing whatever they do in movies.

But with most Will Ferrell movies, there's a sexual side to it. I took my little sister with me to see this and personally, I felt a little bit uncomfterable and annoyed to have taken my sister to it. Uncomfterable because of the sexual content that was in it. Annoyed because my sister kept asking about words that I couldn't even explain what they meant. So a suggestion to parents is: Don't take your kids under 12 to see this movie. But overall, this is one of the funniest movies of the summer and one of the best as well. But if you really want to go to a superb comedy, I'd recommend Dinner For Schmucks since it's not really the typical summer movie you'd go to and it's just plain side splitting funny, while this one is more of the typical summer action comedy that teens would go to. But either way, they're both funny movies. So if you love Will Ferrell and/or Mark Wahlberg or just love to laugh, then you might want to go hang out with The Other Guys.





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REVIEW: Dinner For Schmucks

MOVIE
Dinner For Schmucks

CAST
Steve Carell, Paul Rudd

RATING
PG-13

RELEASE
July 30, 2010

DIRECTOR
Jay Roach

STUDIO(S)
Paramount Pictures,
DreamWorks Pictures

RUNNING TIME
1 hour 54 minutes





GRADE
A+ (100)






STARS
****









REVIEW:

In the year 2010, the movie industry has given audiences all over the world very few good movies and a lot of bad movies. But one comedy, probably one of the best movies of the year so far shines the brightest. That movie, is Dinner For Schmucks. In the movie, we meet two very different men. Tim Conrad lives with his beautiful girlfriend in a nice apartment and works in finance and is competing for a big promotion. Barry Speck is a single man who spends his time building "mousterpieces" which consist of dead mouse bodies made into works of art. In order for Tim to get the promotion he needs, he must bring an idiot to his boss' annual dinner for idiots, where guests bring idiots and crown one of them at the end of the night the "honorary" idiot, in which the attendee has no idea about. So in a chance encounter, Tim finds the solution to his problem: Barry. But as these two spend time together, they make an interesting, yet unlikely friendship, even with the problems they encounter along the way.

If there was an Academy Award for Best Comedy of the year, this movie would surely get my vote as of right now, since I haven't seen Will Ferrell's The Other Guys yet. Steve Carell, who is mostly known for his outrageous humor in films like Date Night and The 40 Year Old Virgin does a terrific job of playing a complete idiot, but at the same time makes a fool out of himself and enjoys it, making him the funniest and best character in the movie. Other supporting actors, like The Hangover's Zach Galifianakis and Flight Of The Conchords' Jemaine Clement are hilarious to watch making a big fool out of themselves. Other funny actors in this movie could include Molly Shannon, Jeff Dunham, and Octavia Spencer, whom the last two are some of the "schmucks" in the dinner scene.

The movie relies on sexual content, vulgar language, and slapstick comedy, which isn't a bad thing, but makes the audience asking for seconds when the credits begin rolling. Personally, If you don't enjoy the first two thirds of the movie, the ending would be what everyone, including the haters of those first two thirds are waiting for, because it has the funniest, and wildest jokes in the entire two hour length. Overall, I loved the movie. Although I can admit that Jay Roach, whose probably most famous for directing the terrific Austin Powers and Meet The Parents' series', brings out almost every single sexual joke in this. My dad, whom accompanied me to the movie, and I both agreed that this could've been rated R, but probably wasn't since, like Mr. Roach's previous works didn't have nudity after women's mildly revealing clothes and buttock's, plus no F-bombs in presence. But if your someone over the age of 13 (which is my age,) and/or get ALL or most of the sexual jokes boiled into the movie, then it's absolutely worth seeing. So, as a teenager, I would recommend anyone older than my age to go out and have a nice Dinner For Schmucks.



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